In Between
by XxWayfaererxX
Summary: [COMPLETE] Throughout Season 1, Mike and Paige have their little moments that build up their subtle attraction to each other.
1. Teasing Levi

**In Between**

_Reference_: Episode 2 - Guadalajara Dog

**Teasing Levi**

Whatever Briggs was up to, she was sure it would be something genius. Fruit platter in hand, she climbed the stairs and passed by Donnie's room.

"Oh, right..." she whispered to herself.

She forgot that he wasn't there, and Mike was currently occupying the room. It was late, but it looked like he was still awake because she could see the light peeking from underneath the door.

She sighed and made her way into her room, setting the fruit down on her desk. Bobby Moi was such a pig, and she needed to shower before sleep. A knock on her door snapped her out of her thoughts.

"Come in."

"Hi, Paige."

"Hey, Levi. What's up?" 

"It's Mike, thanks. Can I talk to you for a minute?"

"Sure. What about?"

Mike entered the room and closed the door.

"Did Lauren have a thing with Donnie?"

Paige was half-impressed that the rookie was observant and caught on quickly. But she wasn't going to give him a straight answer that easily.

"What makes you say that?"

"She seemed offended that I was taking Donnie's room. I know I'm the new guy here, but I get the feeling it's not because of that."

Sub-consciously persistent, too.

"He's DEA. Donnie is a great agent, and we're both disappointed that he's not here right now."

"Oh..." Mike looked at the floor, unsure of what to say next. The last thing he wanted was to embarrass himself with any more assumptions.

"But..." Paige broke the silence. "...yes, they were an item, and they were pretty bad at keeping it a secret."

Mike chuckled. "I'll be sure to stay out of her way then. And not move too much of Donnie's stuff around."

"Smart man." Paige smiled.

"Okay, I'll leave you alone now. Good night, Paige." Mike turned and made his way out.

"Night, Levi." she smirked.

"It's Mike..." she heard him say again through the closed door.

She picked up another grape and popped it into her mouth. Teasing him was going to be so much fun.


	2. Loosening Up

**In Between**

_Reference_: Episode 2 - Guadalajara Dog

**Loosening Up**

Mike decided to turn in for the night so he could review his case files for tomorrow. It was going to be a big day, and he needed to be as prepared as possible for the sale. He made his way up from the bonfire on the beach.

"So Merciless Mike gets off on teddy bears."

Mike laughed. At least she said his name this time. He stopped and turned around, letting Paige catch up to him.

"They didn't have much of a choice." Mike said as they continued walking back to the house.

"Seriously though, whatever you did at that meeting really impressed Briggs. He rarely hands out compliments like that, especially in front of everyone."

"I didn't think I'd need to use my straight-shooting that soon."

Paige raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

"I was expecting a desk job, but I ended up here. I'm still trying to figure out who I pissed off to deserve this assignment."

He wasn't sure if he should've told her that, but he decided it was harmless. Besides, if he was going to conduct a successful investigation into Briggs, he had to start fitting into the house. Trading little bits of information about himself here and there with the others wouldn't be such a bad idea.

"With your shooting? The bureau should be thanking whoever put you out here."

"I'm not exactly undercover material."

"Could've fooled me. Especially after your possessive badass boyfriend cover, which, by the way, Charlie and I had a good laugh about."

Mike rolled his eyes, and Paige laughed.

"I'm just playing, Mike. Loosen up a bit."

"Yes, Ma'am."

"And don't ever call me that again."

"You told me to loosen up. You should take your own advice."

It was Paige's turn to roll her eyes as Mike smiled and silently chalked one up on his side of the board.


	3. Scary

**In Between**

_Reference_: Episode 3 - Heat Run

**Scary**

"Hey, Mikey."

Paige bounced happily into Mike's room. Bobby Moi was down for the count, and she could finally take a few days off. Mike looked up from Bello's file at Paige's smiling face.

"Hey. What's up?"

"I just wanted to say thank you."

"Hmm? For what?"

"Briggs told me that you came up with the whole plan to take Bobby Moi down."

"Not all of it. It wasn't exactly what I had in mind."

"You do realize that we just took down one of the top criminal rings in the area, right?"

"I know, but I thought we were going to arrest Eddie and flip him on Bello. Briggs had other plans."

Paige didn't know what to say. She was happy that Bobby Moi was in custody, but she also felt bad that Briggs had to spoil Mike's plan in order to bail her out.

"But it's okay. Briggs' been working on Bello for months, and we finally got somewhere at the meeting. Bello thinks that Eddie was responsible for losing the bullets to Bobby's crew."

"That's good. At least he thinks you didn't set him up. What now?"

"I don't know. The best thing to do is wait for him to do something, I guess."

"While waiting, why don't you come down and have a drink with us? Charlie is making some Zombie thing."

"Thanks, but I have some work to do." Mike said as he picked up Bello's file and held it up to prove his point. Paige snatched it out of his hand and put it back on the desk.

"Nope, not happening. You're having a drink with us, and that's that."

"Oh? What if I don't want to?" Mike grinned as he leaned back in his chair.

Paige grabbed him by the shirt and pulled him upright. She shot him a serious look as she leaned forward and met him eye-to-eye. Mike's eyes widened in shock as his mouth dropped open.

"Levi. Drinks. Now."

"Okay." Mike managed to squeak out. Any other answer would probably get him killed.

Paige smiled as she let him go and lightly pushed him back into the chair.

"Great! See you downstairs. And be careful. Your face might freeze like that."

Mike watched her go as he tried to mentally slap himself back into reality. That was scary. And kinda hot.


	4. Taking a Break

**In Between**

_Reference_: Episode 3 - Heat Run

**Taking a Break**

Knock, knock.

"Whoever it is, I'm busy."

"It's me. Can I come in?"

Paige huffed in annoyance before getting up to unlock and open her door.

"Hey." Mike leaned on Paige's open doorway.

"I'm busy, Mike." Paige said as she sat back down in her chair and picked up the file she was looking at.

"You could use a break, you know. You've been up here all day."

"Look, can you just leave me alone? I'm not in the mood right now."

At that moment, Paige's stomach growled. Loudly.

"Sounds like you haven't eaten in a while." Mike smirked.

"Yeah, well, I don't care."

Mike uncrossed his arms and walked into Paige's room.

"C'mon, you can't hide up here forever."

Paige closed the folder and slammed it on her desk as she leaned back in her chair and put a hand over her eyes. Reporting Lauren was one of the hardest things she'd done in a long while, but what choice did she have? She put Graceland at risk, and her recklessness almost got Johnny killed. Not that he was complaining much since he was working his injury with the ladies.

"I'm not hiding, I just..."

"You did the right thing." Mike cut her off.

Paige sighed as she crossed her arms. "I know, but I feel like I betrayed her."

Mike was tempted to tell Paige about Briggs' scheme, but he chose not to. After some thought, he figured that Briggs had a point. The house needed to be safe, and setting Lauren up was, in a way, the right thing to do.

A second growl, and this one was even louder.

"You need to eat. Get up. We're going out to find some food."

"I'm fine."

"C'mon, Paige. Everyone's asleep right now, so you won't have to run into Lauren. "

" I told you..."

"We can talk about my sex life." Mike added.

Food and stories of Mike's sex life sounded like a combination that was way too hard to refuse.

"As long as you're buying."

Mike laughed. "Don't worry, I am. I'll just grab my wallet."

As he left her room, she stood up and stretched. Taking a sweater from her closest, she stopped by the mirror to do a once-over and found something she wasn't expecting. Despite how she was feeling, the tiniest of smiles played on her lips. She hadn't known Mike for long, but he seemed to have that affect on her.


	5. Shaken

**In Between**

_Reference_: Episode 4 - Pizza Box

**Shaken**

Mike bit back another sob as tried to do the dishes. All he could see was red...red in the pot, red on the dishes...red, red, red. It was only sauce, but all he could see was Eddie's blood on his still shaking hands. He couldn't decide what was worse: almost getting shot, or setting Eddie up.

"Mike?"

He dropped the glass he was soaping, and it shattered in the sink, possibly also breaking another plate or two.

"A little jumpy, aren't we?" Paige said jokingly. But Mike just stood there with his hands on the sink and his head down.

"Mike?" No response. She made her way over to him and put a hand on his back. When she looked at his face, she could see tears threatening to fall.

"Hey, what's wrong?"

Mike wiped his eyes before looking at her.

"I met up with Bello. I thought he wanted me to give another shooting lesson."

"Okay, so what happened?"

"Bello caught Eddie trying to skip town."

"Did he kill him?"

"No. Bello asked for my gun, and he gave it to Eddie. I thought he was going to shoot me, but Bello said something to him, and he...he shot himself in the head."

Mike sat on the bar stool and sighed deeply.

"We killed him, Paige. We set him up, and we killed him."

"It's not our fault."

"But we lied."

"We did, but we also gave him a way out. Eddie made his own choice, and that got him killed."

They stayed silent for a moment before Mike stood up and went back to the sink.

"When I look at what's in here, all I see here is Eddie's blood."

"It's just sauce, Mike."

"Briggs said the same thing. But I can't help it, you know?"

"Yeah. Why don't you get some rest? I can finish up here if you want."

"I can manage."

"You sure? It's a one-time offer, and it's never going to happen again." Paige said, trying to lighten the mood.

Mike smiled a bit. "I got it. Thanks for the offer though."

"Okay. I'm right down the hall if you need anything. Night, Mike."

"Good night."

When Mike reached down to pick up the pieces of the broken glass and plate, he noticed his hands stopped shaking.


	6. Circumstances

**In Between**

_Reference_: Episode 5 - O-Mouth

**Circumstances**

"Bigfoot, huh?"

"That's what I saw on Bello's calendar when I was over at his place. You know what it is?"

Paige nodded. "I've been doing my homework, too. Looks like we'll be teaming up on this one. By the way, where did Briggs go?"

"He's with Charlie and Johnny working on the Quinn case again. Any bets this time?"

Paige laughed. "Nope. I figured I'd give Johnny a break."

"Can I ask you something? You bet on Briggs and Charlie hooking up, right?"

"Yeah. So?"

"I thought there was no love in Graceland. Wasn't that Briggs' rule?"

"It is."

"Then?"

"A woman just knows when it's going to happen. And Briggs doesn't exactly follow the rules all the time, but I think you figured that out already."

Mike was fully aware of that thanks to Juan. If he did anything wrong, of course.

"How are things going between you and Abby?"

"Considering the circumstances..." Mike said as he waved his finger at the entirety of Graceland. "...I'm taking things really slow."

"She can't find out."

"I know. What about you? Anyone ever find out?"

"Came close a few times. But I broke it off before it got worse."

"How did that go?"

Paige paused for a moment, carefully picking out her words.

"The job comes first."

She thought that would be enough for him, but...

"That's not what I asked."

...God, did he have to be that persistent?

"Well, that's the answer you're getting. This is my life, Mike. This is what I do. I can't give it up for some cheap love affair."

"You could. But you choose not to. Or you just haven't met someone who would make you think otherwise."

Paige opened her mouth to defend herself, but nothing came out. He was right. Mike Warren rendered her speechless with a revelation she hadn't really thought of. She closed her mouth and heaved a huge sigh.

"Maybe..." she admitted. "Who knows? Maybe I'll meet the right girl someday."

But she wasn't going to give him the satisfaction of being right. Mike stared at her with both eyebrows raised and his mouth slightly open.

"The look on your face right now is priceless." Paige said as she tapped Mike on the nose. When the realization hit him, all he could do was facepalm while Paige burst out laughing.


	7. Dreaming

**In Between**

_Reference_: Episode 6 – Hair of the Dog

**Dreaming**

"What are you smiling about?" Paige asked as she passed Mike on her way downstairs.

Mike clicked the screen off on his phone.

"Nothing…."

"So nothing is making you smile right now."

"Uh…yeah?" Even his own reply sounded weak to his ears.

Paige rolled her eyes as she continued on to the kitchen.

"Whatever. Say 'hi' to Abby for me."

Mike sighed and followed Paige downstairs.

"Are you still annoyed at me about last night?"

"No."

"Then what's with the attitude?"

"No attitude." Paige continued eating her bowl of cereal without looking up at him.

Mike ran his fingers through his hair in frustration. There's just no way to please this woman, is there?

"Can't I just be happy without you ruining it for me?"

"Ruining it for you? Are you kidding me, Mike?" She finished her cereal, dropped the bowl in the sink, and stomped out of the kitchen. Mike grabbed her by the arm.

"Why did you introduce me to Abby?"

"Why did you lie to me about her just now?" Paige countered as she spun around out of his grip.

"No. You're not turning this around on me. You introduced me to Abby, and now you're annoyed that we actually like each other. Why?"

Paige glared at him, but her expression softened a bit after she saw the confused look in his eyes.

"You still don't get it, do you?"

"Get what?"

"You're dreaming, Mike. You only think you're happy."

Mike's phone rang. He pulled it out and sighed at the flashing name on the screen.

"It's Bello. I have to take this."

As Paige turned to go upstairs, she looked back at Mike and shook her head. She assumed that Abby would be a one-night-stand, but she was wrong. Mike wasn't like that, and the realization alone sent a pang of guilt through her. This wasn't going to end well for both of them.


	8. The Job

**In Between**

_Reference_: Episode 7 – Goodbye High

**The Job**

Mike held the communicator watch in his hand as he sat in the living room. No matter how much sense he tried to make of it, something wasn't adding up. Charlie said she put in new batteries before she gave it to Briggs, and he tested it about four times over without any problems. How was it that Odin Rossi slipped through their fingers again? He put the watch down and rubbed his face in frustration.

"You look tired."

"With the way Odin Rossi keeps himself off the grid, I'm starting to think that he really is a ghost. You wouldn't happen to have anything on him, would you?"

"My office hasn't given me anything because we can't find him, either. Sorry."

"Then would you happen to know the number for the Ghostbusters?"

Paige laughed. "You'll find him. Don't worry."

Mike took a deep breath and sat back into the couch.

"You know, I still can't believe Charlie shot up to save her case. She knew the risk, but she did it anyways. If Briggs wasn't there to pull her out, she could've ended up like her CI."

"She's stubborn like that. But that's what makes her a good agent."

"Would you have done it?"

"If I had an out, probably not. You?"

"Same."

They stayed in silent contemplation before Paige spoke up again.

"Did you talk to Abby yet?"

"Nope. And I can't call her since we wrecked her phone…."

"You need to end it. It's for your own good. The job…"

"…comes first. You don't have to remind me."

"Then why do I get the feeling that you're ignoring me?"

"We're not having this conversation right now." Mike stood up and headed to his room. He was about to close the door, but Paige stopped it in time. She entered and shut the door behind her.

"Paige, what do you want from me?"

"I want you to look me in my eyes and tell me that you're going to break up with Abby."

"You're being ridiculous."

"Am I, Mike?" Paige challenged.

Two pairs of eyes battled for a moment until Mike pushed past Paige and out the door.

"Where are you going?"

"Out. See you later."

"You can't ignore thi…"

Slam.

Jakes' words rang through Mike's mind as he drove around town to clear his head. If he was going to stay with Abby, he would have to continue lying to Paige. He sighed at the thought, but that was the only way he was going to get her off his back.


	9. Spooning

**In Between**

_Reference_: Episode 8 – Bag Man

**Spooning**

Mike stared at his grandfather's photo as he sipped his beer slowly. Odin got away, and Briggs had to save him again. Mike was a rookie, but he figured that even the worst of them didn't make this many mistakes. He sighed as he covered his face with both hands and rubbed his temples slowly, wishing he could crawl even further into his shell.

A soft knock followed by the opening and closing of his door pulled him out of his thoughts.

"Are you okay? Charlie told me everything."

"I'm alive. It counts for something, I guess."

"Don't beat yourself up. It could've happened to any of you."

"Yeah, but it happened to me, Paige."

He took a long swig of beer before standing up and plopping down dejectedly on the edge of his bed.

"If I was more alert, I would've had him. But I guess I'm not good enough."

Paige sat next to him and flicked his ear.

"Ow! What was that for?" Mike said as he rubbed the sting out of his ear.

"I told you, don't beat yourself up. Believe me, I know it sucks. But be happy that he didn't kill you, Mike. I know I am."

"Why? So you can watch me fail again?" Mike said as he flopped back on the bed.

"No. So I can do this."

Paige slapped him hard on the stomach. She laughed as she watched Mike curl up in pain.

"What the hell?!"

"You need to snap out of it." she managed between giggles.

"Fine, but you're gonna pay for that."

He turned over to grab Paige, but she jumped up, opened the door, and bolted down the stairs with Mike in hot pursuit. They ran into the kitchen where Charlie was slicing vegetables for the soup she was making since Johnny was too lazy to cook dinner.

"Hey, hey, hey! No running in MY kitchen!"

"She hit me!" Mike said as he lifted his shirt to show the red hand print Paige deposited on his stomach.

"I don't care. You two, out!"

But both of them ignored her as they played cat and mouse around the counter, laughing the whole time. Paige ran behind Charlie and used her as a shield. She lifted her hand that was holding the spoon used to stir the pot.

"Charlie has a spoon, and she's not afraid to use it!"

Mike raised an eyebrow as he snatched the spoon out of Charlie's hand. He smiled at Paige, hinting his evil intention as he raised the newly acquired spoon. Paige yelped and ran around the counter to make a bee line back up the stairs and into her room. Mike gave chase, ready to whack Paige with the spoon the first chance he got.

"Give me back my spoon! I need it for the soup!" Charlie yelled helplessly up the stairs. She would've been more annoyed had she not realized that Paige managed to get Mike in better spirits.


	10. Breakfast

**In Between**

_Reference_: Episode 9 – Smoke Alarm

**Breakfast**

He had to tell her. He knew he would be putting his case on Briggs in serious jeopardy, but he had to tell her something. Paige kept his secret about Abby, and after another sleepless night, he made the decision to tell someone in the house before it ate into him even more. He stood in front of her door and hesitated a bit before finally knocking.

"Paige?"

No response. He turned to leave, but the door opened. Standing in the doorway was a disheveled shell of Paige Arkin who looked pissed off that someone disturbed her beauty sleep.

"Mike, you'd better have a good reason for waking me up at..." she looked at her watch, "...5 in the morning."

"I…uh…can we talk?"

"No. Now go away, and let me sleep."

Okay, this could've gone better. Maybe even later in the day? In any case, Mike regained his determination and stopped Paige from closing her door on him.

"Look, I'm sorry I lied to you yesterday."

Paige crossed her arms and said nothing, still annoyed that he was keeping secrets from her when she was trying to get him to open up. And for barging into her room so early in the morning. Mike took this as his cue to keep talking.

"There's another case I've been working on. It's getting out of hand. My grandfather's picture…it had a bug in it."

Paige's eyes flew open. "A bug? Mike, this could…."

"Don't worry. I know who put it there. The house is safe."

"How exactly does this tie into your case?"

Mike wasn't ready to give her all of the details, but he also wasn't sure why Juan planted a bug in the picture either. So he answered her as honestly as he could.

"I don't know. I'm heading to the bureau to figure it out."

"Wait, you told me you got that picture as a gift from your shrink at the office. Are you saying he was the one who put it there?"

"I'm pretty sure it was him."

"Why would your shrink want to put a bug on you? What's going on, Mike?"

"I have to find out at the office. And about the case…I really wish I could tell you more, but even I don't have all the details to start putting things together."

"Sure. Like I said, if you want to be all alone…."

"I know you're trying to understand. You're the only one in this house who does that for me, and I appreciate it. But I'm asking for a little more patience from you until I get this all sorted out." He looked down at the floor. "I don't want to lie to you anymore, Paige."

She wasn't happy that she didn't get direct answers from him, but it was clear that this case he was working on was taking its toll on him. She chose to let it go for now.

"Alright. I don't know what's wrong with you, but just remember you can talk to me."

"Thanks, Paige. That means a lot to me. I'll let you get back to sleep. I'm sorry I woke you up." He opened her door and walked out before another thought crossed his mind.

"Hey, you want to get breakfast later on? I'm buying."

"Is that the guilt talking, or are you asking me out?" Paige joked.

Mike thought for a moment before answering.

"Would you be offended if I was asking you out?" He countered.

Paige giggled. "I can't. I have to head into the office in a few hours. But I'm free tomorrow, so we can go then." She offered as consolation.

Mike smiled. "Okay. Breakfast tomorrow."

He closed the door, and Paige got into bed. It was a joke, but she wasn't opposed to Mike asking her out to breakfast. Even at 5 in the morning.


	11. Here

**In Between**

_Reference_: Episode 10 – King's Castle

**Here**

Mike was about to drift off to sleep when he heard his door open and close. He knew who it was, and the only question left was why she was in his room this late at night. He turned over and found her standing at the edge of his bed.

"Hey."

"Hey." Mike sat up gingerly, feeling the angry gash at his side clawing into him.

"Is something wrong?"

She said nothing but moved around and sat next to him on the bed. She handed back his essay and stared at him for a moment before putting her arms around him, pulling him into a tight hug.

"I'm sorry, Mikey." Paige said in a hushed voice. "I said I was on your side. And then I just left you broken in that hospital bed."

He felt her sob as he returned her hug, trying his best to ignore the searing pain from his wound.

"Does this mean I'm forgiven?" This time he felt her chuckle before she pulled away.

"Only if you tell me what's going on with you." She said as she wiped away the last of her tears.

"I owe you that much. But I need to lie down."

Paige got up and helped Mike swing his feet back onto the bed. Once he was lying comfortably on his back, she got into bed next to him and turned on her side so she could see him while he spoke.

Mike poured out all of his secrets to her about his case and Briggs. After that, their conversation turned into stories of their childhood. While Paige told him about her childhood pets, he realized that these were stories she rarely told to anyone. He'd somehow earned the right to be this intimate with her as she let her walls down. He would've loved to stay up all night, but his medicine was taking over as he felt his eyelids close.

"Hey, are you still awake?"

"Mmm…sorry, but I think I'm out of gas."

"It's okay. You need your rest. Go to sleep."

Mike closed his eyes and relaxed as Paige curled up next to him under the covers.

"Aren't you going back to your room?" He murmured sleepily.

"Not yet."

"You know we'll never hear the end of it if Johnny catches you here, right?"

"Yeah. But he won't. Just don't cry when I'm not here in the morning." She said as she yawned against him.

"By the way, I still owe you breakfast."

Paige grinned. "Okay."

And for the first time since he arrived at Graceland, Mike had a beautiful woman fall asleep in his bed.


	12. The Next Step

**In Between**

_References_: Episode 11 - Happy Endings / Episode 12 - Pawn

**The Next Step**

"This is what you do when your case turns cold?"

"Only when I need to do some serious thinking about the next step."

"So what's the 'next step'?" Mike emphasized with air quotes.

"Don't get smart with me. Now switch."

Mike smirked and handed her the Rocky Road as he took the Fudge Mint pint from her.

"In all seriousness though, I have no clue. I'd usually turn to Paul, and he'd give me an idea. But I guess those days are over."

"Are you nervous about Clark calling us in tomorrow?"

Paige shrugged. "I don't know what to be nervous about. I mean, you've told me everything about your case, right?"

"Yeah."

"So if he asks me about it, I'll tell him that you came to me for help."

Mike finished the last of Fudge Mint, put the carton on the night stand, and scooted downward to lie on Paige's bed.

"They think we're doing something in here."

"Of course we are. We're eating ice cream."

Mike rolled his eyes. "That's not what I meant."

Paige laughed. "Let them think what they want."

"And you're okay with that?"

"Yeah. I need company right now."

"You could've asked Charlie."

"Too paranoid at the moment."

"Or Jakes."

"Too guilty. And he's no fun."

"Or Johnny."

"I'd never hear the end of his sex jokes."

"Or all three of them."

"Do you not want to be here right now?" Paige finally asked.

"Why me?"

"Because out of everyone in the house, I trust you the most."

"Really? I thought I was a rat."

"I said I was sorry."

"I know. I'm just messing with you. Ow! What is it with you and smacking me these days?!" Mike said as he rubbed his arm.

"You deserved it." Paige finished her pint and lied on the bed with her hands behind her head.

"Do you think we'll find Briggs?"

"He could be long gone by now. But do me a favor."

"What's that?"

"Don't let this case destroy you, Mike."

"It won't happen."

"How can you be so sure? You saw what it did to you…what it's doing to all of us."

"There's a difference." Mike took her hand in his as he turned to look her in the eyes. "I have you on my side now."


	13. Author's Notes

**In Between**

_Author's Notes_

First off, I thank you for taking the time to read all 12 parts of this behind-the-scenes miniseries. I hope you enjoyed it as much as I enjoyed writing each part.

I felt that the build-up to Mike and Paige's kiss scene was rushed and almost non-existent, and it wasn't until the last three episodes that I was really sure something would happen between them. I wrote this miniseries to add some flavor to their subtle attraction to each other and hopefully fill in a few gaps.

Despite this, the producer, Jeff Eastin, did a really good job of focusing on the mystery in each episode as opposed to coupling up the agents. This is the main reason I'm excited for the second season of Graceland.

In this bonus section, you get to see my thought process. I took time to re-watch each episode and do some research before writing each section. The idea was to have each part slide into scenes before, during, or after each episode where the camera was off any supposed interaction between Mike and Paige. Though everything is made up, I did my best to stick to the actual story and timeline as best as I could.

I don't know if I'll be writing anything for the second season, but I won't be making that decision until the season finale airs.

Again, thank you for reading, and I hope the second season will be as great as the first.

* * *

Episode 1 - Pilot

No Paige yet…

* * *

Episode 2 - Guadalajara Dog

_Teasing Levi / Loosening Up_

Paige makes her first appearance. Since Mike is the new guy, he's going to naturally be hesitant about doing things until he gets approval from his roommates. In _Teasing Levi_ and _Loosening Up_, Paige takes full advantage of Mike's nervous energy by poking fun at him to get a reaction. The point of both parts was to set the tone for the rest of the miniseries with some playful banter.

* * *

Episode 3 - Heat Run

_Scary / Taking a Break_

When I first saw this episode, I wasn't entirely convinced that there would be a side story with Mike and Paige. Of course, we find everything out in the final episode, which led me to write _Scary_ the way I did. I felt that Paige was being written up as some badass DEA agent who usually gets what she wants, and that's exactly how I portrayed her in this third part. Also, I wanted to solidify the fact that Mike does have a crush on Paige even though he was with Abby at the time.

I hit a small writer's block on _Taking a Break_. I wanted to write something about Paige having to deal with the fact that she reported Lauren, but I didn't know how. One could say that I wrote her a bit out of character, but I could also argue that she's human and that she would feel guilty about reporting one of her own. I had a different idea with Mike, but I remembered Paige saying she to talk about Mike's sex life before they found the tracker under Lauren's car. Once I included that bit, I was able to put together a scene for _Taking a Break_.

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Episode 4 - Pizza Box

_Shaken_

This was a no-brainer for me. In the final scene of the episode, we see Mike continuing to wash the dishes alone and just about ready to have a meltdown. Paige is there to pick him up, and I finally get a chance to show her softer side with Mike. _Shaken_ is where I start including the little things they do for each other when no one else is around to watch them.

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Episode 5 - O-Mouth / Episode 6 - Hair of the Dog / Episode 7 - Goodbye High

_Circumstances / Dreaming / The Job_

I almost quit on the entire miniseries at this point. There was little interaction with Mike and Paige, and I was having a really tough time coming up with the next scenes. After re-watching a few episodes ahead, I was inspired to write about Paige's thoughts on relationships outside of Graceland. This three-part arc in my miniseries focuses on the friction between Mike and Paige about Mike's relationship with Abby. The first time the episodes aired, I wasn't sure if Paige was jealous, concerned that Mike would fall apart once his cover was blown, or a bit of both. As such, I wrote _Circumstances, Dreaming, _and_ The Job_ ambiguously to mirror the three reference episodes.

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Episode 8 - Bag Man

_Spooning_

With Abby out of the picture, Mike could finally turn his attention back to Paige. I wrote _Spooning_ with the intention of returning to the lighthearted, playful foreplay between these two. The last four episodes get serious really fast, and including this break in between is a decent reminder of how great Mike and Paige when they're together.

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Episode 9 - Smoke Alarm

_Breakfast_

Mike says something about missing breakfast as he wakes up in the hospital bed after being stabbed. I used that particular moment as my inspiration to write how he gets to saying that. _Breakfast_ serves as Mike's first off-camera move on Paige that's carefully disguised as a harmless joke, which could've been made possible had Mike not been stabbed by Cortes/Jangles.

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Episode 10 - King's Castle

_Here_

This was the easiest episode to write about. The tension built up after Johnny's tirade was enough for me to imagine Paige coming into Mike's room right after and apologizing for judging him so fast. I made the connection to _Breakfast_ because of the last few scenes of Episode 10 where we see Mike and Paige walking on the beach together.

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Episode 11 - Happy Endings / Episode 12 - Pawn

_The Next Step_

The scene in _The Next Step_ was entirely inspired by Jakes' comment to Paige about "banging the rat" while Graceland was being searched. This led me to believe that even Jakes figured out that something was going on between Mike and Paige. In this final part of the miniseries, I returned to the witty banter/foreplay but chose to end it on a somewhat serious note with Mike's simple caress. The title of this part is also a reference to what the writers could possibly have in store for their relationship in the second season of Graceland.


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